Fantasia! Taylor! Fantasia! Taylor! My sister! My daughter!
Oh, sorry, PopWatchers. Didn’t see you standing there. How much of that did you hear? Really? Er, well, okay, I’ll just be honest with you. I was in the midst of a raging internal debate. You see, tomorrow, American Idol’s third- and fifth-season champs, Fantasia Barrino and Taylor Hicks — or, if you prefer, their self-titled CDs — will be engaging in a little head-to-head battle at your local record store, and I’m struggling to predict who’s going to be the sales champ.
My gut feeling is that Taylor’s week 1 sales will be a tad higher. After all, his season is freshest in Idol fanatics’ minds, and one should not underestimate how many fortysomething chicks out Christmas shopping for their families will be willing to part with a twenty-dollar bill to support their favorite gray-haired hip-swiveler.
That said, I think ‘Tasia may move more CDs in the long haul. I’m almost done listening to her new disc (which, along with Taylor Hicks, is streaming over at AOL Music), and I’ve heard at least four potential smashes she could use to follow up the fierce first single "Hood Boy" — "When I See You," "Uneligible," "Not the Way That I Do," and the insanely addictive "Baby Makin Hips" (which is threatening to replace Beyonce’s "Sugar Mama" as the Slezak Repeat-Loop Track of the Week™ …I’m sure my coworkers will be delighted). As far as I’m concerned, Fantasia does for ‘Tasia what Breakaway did for Kelly Clarkson; it transforms her from reality-TV sensation to full-fledged artist — and hopefully, a multiplatinum one at that. Of course, maybe I’m just biased about my fave Idol. Listen to Fantasia and Taylor Hicks for yourself, and then predict who’ll be the first-week and overall sales champ.
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Oh Michael, you had me peeing in my pants with the My sister! My Daughter! line. How do you do it??
Fantasia CANNOT SING. How long before someone, anyone, realizes this?!!!! She is the screechiest broad EVER.
Of all the AI winners so far, Fantasia is the only one whose actual singing voice is more than just a very capable instrument: Yes, Taylor, Carrie, Kelly and Ruben, all of them can sing and sing well, but Fantasia has that extra thing;Call it soul or oomph or grit or raw emotional power, but she delivers chills with the sheer quality of her voice.
It’s like Mary J Blige, Aretha and Terrence Trent D’Arby had spawn and gave it child-bearing hips.
I am betting this CD will be her Breakaway;Not only will it finally give her huge hits on radio but will turn her into a full-fledged superstar, far from the AI shadow…
Go Tasia Go! FINALLY something good and new from her that isn’t 19 produced (the kiss of death, or at least Sleeping Beautyesque slumber for an Idol winner).
I don’t get all the hatin’ for her–I think she’s a scrappy kid with a unique voice that deserves success. I can’t wait!!!
Taylor will have a huge first week in sales, but Fantasia will be the winner in the long run, critically if not commercially.
Her cd is FIRE! My favorites are Hood Boy, Baby Makin Hips, Bore Me, Surround U, Two Weeks Notice, but I love all of the songs. Michael, check out your girl on the Today Show with When I See U and on Leno with Hood Boy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aob41WLZ54E
Hey Michael, had my first Mojito this weekend, freakin delicious!
This has nothing to do with this post but remembering your article awhile ago made me curious for the Mo.
Daughtry will beat them both in total sales.
I agree that Taylor Hicks will most likely sell more than Fantasia the first week, then perhaps he can take his horrid voice, looks, and persona and fade into richly deserved obscurity.
I don’t feel the spark for Fantasia anymore because I barely recognize her. She’s had so much work done on her face she’s barely the same person from Idol.
Anyone else feel me?
Sorry – but MJB greatest hits will clober both of them in sales. Otherwise – taylor will be out fantasia – only because this is his first CD
I think and hope Daughtry will continue his fourth week finishing at the top of the charts. In the long run, I think Taylor and Fantasia will be forgotten. McPhee, Clarkson, Daughtry, and Underwood will be longrun winners.
I agree with with another poster who said Daughtry will outsell all of them. He has already had the second highest debut of any Idol contestant (behind Clay Aiken) and will do much better in the long run than these two overrated performers. Just goes to show that the most succesful Idols such as Clay, Chris, and Jennifer Hudson, are never the winners (except for my favorite one, Kelly).
Daughtry had the second highest debut week of all the Idol contestants??? Nope, not even close. Clay, Reuben and Carrie all outsold him in their first week, and Taylor is about to.
The Clay Aiken debut was 2x the size of Daughtry.
I don’t see Fantasia ever becoming a big star, Michael. I definitely see Taylor having the worst time of all the AI winners, though; this guy CANNOT become a big star!
personally, while we’re on the subject of AI, i have never seen the appeal of katherine mcphee (elliot yamin should have won that season, or at least been runner up in her place) and i don’t think she’ll have a career. now, i could be wrong, but she seemed to me to have a very stuck-up, self-absorbed attitude on AI, and also, while she makes the attempt, she doesn’t have anywhere near the voice of christina aguilera, or the appeal to a youth audience. anyone have any thoughts on this? (as a voracious reader of Slezak’s AI tv watches, i think he would agree with me)
Sorry, nac, but I must disagree. I am a fan of McPhee. I can see her becoming a star. Unfortunaterly, tahts not gonna happen w/ what she’s been up to. Congrats to her for winning the Big It-Girl at the VH1 awards, but don’t let it go to your head, Kat, Paris won one too. Also, sorry to hear about your struggl with bulemia, but turn to your singing. Otherwise, you’ll just be another correspondent on The Insider helping anorexic twins. (Tracy Gold, anyone?) As for Taylor vs. Fantasia, I’m not a fan of either, but if pressed, I’d go for Fantasia. (Dont take that as a compliment, Tasia). Taylor could probably do some killer cover songs, but I wonyt be surprised when I see his cd in the $5 bin at wal-mart a year from now…
Haha!
“My sister! My daughter!”
Slezak, I swear, you’re posts are the highlight of my day…even if they ARE about that god-forsaken “American Idol” crap.
Sadly, this remains one of the few areas to which we will never see eye-to-eye.
Rock on.
Slezak, please stop trying to push Fantasia on us. The girl sings like Minnie Mouse on Helium.
Fantasia is just plain awful, like the bizarro twin of Macy Gray–yuck! Her season was the weakest of all the Idol years and she pretty much won by default. She will never reach the status of Carrie or Kelly, and I think Taylor (how did he win again?) will even move more records than her. Heck, Chris Daughtry, who didn’t even win, is already a bigger star than Fantasia.
I am tired of EW trying to force Fantasia on the public, it really hurts the mag’s credibility.
Here’s me wondering if Fantasia ever learned how to read? Maybe that’s why her singing sounds so bad, she can’t figure out any of the words!
Please Mr. Michael Slezak. If you want to her who the winner of Idol should have been over Fantasia..check out Ms. Hudson on the Dreamgirls soundtrack..now that is talent and actually singing.
Taylor will be a smash hit with the e-z listening crowd, and Fantasia with the R&B crowd. It’s really apples & oranges. BTW– I always thought Taylor was goofy looking, but that picture above the story is HOT!
Mr. Slezak, I am surprised that haven’t reported on Elliot Yamin’s record deal. On People they said he signed with Sony, and has an album due in February.
thanks michael. i support fantasia. just bought the ablum off amazon. it’ll be my christmas gift from you.
hello tasia, pink wants her hair back.
I agree with you. I just listened to her whole album and I think its great. Taylor’s album…not so much. I love that her voice is different. Love her.
Sorry, both albums stink! I just got through sampling both of them. I had high hopes for Taylor, but I am definitely disappointed. I like Taylor, but this album is just not very good. Fantasia was a turn off when she came back to Idol to perform. Her screaming is just awful!
Ehhh.. they should both do fine. My guess is Taylor will do more initially. But they are both kind of polarizing, aren’t they? Just in this thread these two are catching some serious venom. In any case, both play to very specific fanbases, and both have made records that will appeal to that fanbase. I have no idea which will be able to pull in broader fans. If you put a gun to my head I would say Fantasia has a better shot, but only because you made me. Truth is Taylor has a couple on his record that could be big crossover singles too. I dunno.
Stephen:
I understand that at times we type in a hurry for whatever reason-and I really enjoyed your post, but please try not to make so many typing errors. And I am not saying that I never do, because I do. But You have one too many. Check before posting.
Reality Check:
Clay may have had a bigger first week, but unfortunately his CD is not very good, and I do like Clay;but this CD is not cutting it! I hope more people catch on to how good Chris really is and will support his sales. I bought Clay’s CD and will be donating it to the Good Will.